New Moon, by Stephanie Meyer


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Reviewed by Derek Cheng


The long awaited sequel of the critically acclaimed Twilight has arrived, and it has proven itself to be even juicer than the original book. I have got my hands on this book, and now I will tell you all about it.

First though, I want to make a connection between this book and Twilight. I think that from the beginning, you don't really see a lot of connections, but I also think that if you don't read the first book, then you won't understand this one. The reason is that in New Moon, the original characters, such as Edward, Jacob, Bella, and all of the Cullens, aren't really explained. The story starts with a startling event, and for people that didn't read the first book, they wouldn't know what the heck the author is talking about.

New Moon follows the same path as the original Twilight. The story is told in the perspective of Bella Swan, the main character, and therefore everything in the book is in her view. New Moon also uses the same type of beginning as Twilight - it starts off with a few lines from the climax of the book, and then the story begins from where the last book left off. I actually like this kind of beginning, because it leaves you wondering what the first few lines mean. It gives you will to read the book, because you want to find out what the beginning means, and after you finish the book, you find out. New characters also play new meanings in this sequel. Jacob Black, who previously played only a small role in Twilight, now is one of the main characters in New Moon. He continues to be a main character throughout the series. All else is pretty much the same as Twilight, with even the story layout being the same. Next is a little summary.

Bella's birthday arrives, and Alice plans a huge birthday party for her at the Cullen's huge house. At the party, Bella accidentally cuts her finger while opening a present, and a single drop of blood that dripped on the floor caused mayhem. Edward decides to leave Forks because of the danger his family posed to Bella, and he leaves Bella depressed and crying. Bella finds comfort with Jacob Black, who she describes as "my own personal sun". Later on, Bella tries cliff diving, but Alice sees her jumping off a cliff and interprets that as suicide. Alice returns to Forks to check if Bella is alive, and she is. But Rosalie told Edward that Bella is dead, and Edward tries to die as well. Bella saves him from dying at the last moment, and they then have a meeting with the great Volturi...

I hope you all read New Moon, and I hope you all enjoy just as much as I did. Thanks for reading!